Industry veteran Albert Sebok passes away
STRONGSVILLE, Ohio — Industry veteran Albert Sebok, who held a distinguished career as a pharmacist and healthcare advocate, passed away on Nov. 3.
Following his graduation from Ohio Northern University in 1953 with a Bachelor of Science degree in pharmacy, the Cleveland native joined Standard Drug as a store manager. In 1961, Revco acquired Standard, and Sebok began his rise in store operations, which culminated with his appointment in 1971 as a SVP for store operations of Revco. Revco grew to become a discount drug chain with more than 2,000 stores and was acquired by CVS in 1997.
For more than 50 years, Sebok maintained a relationship with the Raabe College of Pharmacy and Ohio Northern. He served as an original member of ONU’s Pharmacy Advisory Board and was the founder and instructor of the college’s Contemporary Pharmacy Practice class.
During the Inaugural Sebok Pharmacy Lecture in 2010 at the Ohio Northern University Rudolph H. Raabe College of Pharmacy, National Association of Chain Drug Stores president and CEO Steve Anderson said, “Pharmacy will become whatever people like you envision, and its advancement will reflect the energy with which you engage. Effective consultations and wise operational decisions, stitched together over the course of decades, create an impressive career. But Albert Sebok has accomplished even more than that. His commitment to pharmacy goes far beyond talk of a distinguished career. It also defines what it means to be part of, and to advance, one’s profession.”
In 1991, Sebok was honored with the NACDS Pratt Award, which recognized his leadership in chain drug pharmacy.
He has held numerous positions in the pharmacy industry at the international, national, state and local levels. He has served on college advisory boards at the University of Texas, the University of Florida, Samford University, the University of Toledo and Ohio Northern.
In 1988, Ohio Northern honored him with an honorary doctorate in pharmacy. In addition to his honorary doctoral degree from the ONU’s college of pharmacy, Sebok was also the recipient of its Distinguished Alumni award in 2009. The University had previously presented him with Distinguished Alumni Awards in 1977 and 2001.
Sebok is the husband of the late Janet; father of Sue Navy (Dave) and Albert F. Sebok; brother of Vera Barnick; brother-in-law of Eleanor Foster; grandfather of Leighann and Lori Johnson, Matt and Hilary Navy; and uncle to Sharon Foster, Jim Barnick, and Barbara Ben-Ezra.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Ohio Northern University, School of Pharmacy, Sebok Scholarship Fund, 529 S. Main St., Ada, Ohio 45810.